DONALD TRUMP

The Republican attorney general said he's very confident he "did not and would never advocate for anything other than strict adherence" to state and federal laws.

"I would never and did not advocate for any sort of end-run shenanigans. I wanted to push to make sure that shenanigans weren't being pushed in either direction," North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said in response to a report that he advocated for recounts in the 2020 election in a message that reached former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows.

Book reveals he sent message to Sen. Kevin Cramer outlining 'last-ditch effort,' which Cramer forwarded to Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows

Trump on Aug. 10 declined to answer questions in a lengthy, closed-door deposition at the office of the attorney general, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination more than 400 times.

It is unclear whether the review will go forward as instructed by Cannon, the Florida judge nominated by Trump in 2020 who ordered the review.

The former president is choosing to align himself with a conspiracy theory movement that believes, in its best moments, the Democratic Party is run by a secret cabal of pedophiles and, in its worst moments, that zombie JFK is going to come back and lead our country again while a Filipino health care worker is going to take over Canada with an assist from our military. This is who you'd vote for to be president again, Rep. Armstrong? This man's endorsement is important to you, Sen. Hoeven? This is the person who commands your loyalty, Sen. Cramer?

The government asked the appeals court to rule on the request "as soon as practicable."

The documents probe is one of several federal and state investigations Trump is facing from his time in office and in private business as he considers another run for the presidency in 2024.

If our presidents, and our Congress, can't even be trusted to do something as routine as make timely appointments to offices like U.S. attorney, how in the world could we ever expect them to tackle the far more complex, if similarly routine, business of budgeting?